SNOHOMISH — Terry Thoren had about 22 minutes to make his pitch.
He was looking for storytellers, voice actors, musicians, directors, graphic artists and others wanting to take part in animated productions.
No experience was necessary. Just a desire to learn after school and be part of something meaningful.
On Tuesday morning, nearly all of the 102 students filling up the lower section of the Glacier Peak High School Performing Arts Center signed a sheet expressing an interest.
It is a chance to work with a seasoned pro from the world of family-friendly entertainment. Thoren, a cartoon lover since childhood, oversaw the production of “Rugrats,” “The Wild Thornberrys,” “Rocket Power,” “Aaahh!!! Real Monsters,” two “Rugrats” TV spin-offs and four movies for Paramount.
These days, he splits his time between his new home of Snohomish and an animation studio in Los Angeles. He is CEO of WonderGrove, which produces multimedia content for children at risk of falling behind before the third grade. His work also focuses on reaching children with special needs.
Thoren approached school district leaders a while back to see if there was an interest in letting him work with older students whose contributions would help younger ones.
In classrooms of kindergarten through second-graders, a cartoon can seem “like water in the desert,” Thoren said.
Andrew Russell, a Glacier Peak senior, watched some of those videos Tuesday. The idea of writing scripts to help young people with special needs learn social skills and about peer interaction is particularly appealing to him. Russell has a high-functioning form of autism known as Asperger’s syndrome. He often learns best through pictures rather than just words.
“Those videos would have actually helped me,” he said.
Leif Jorgensen, a senior preparing for the school’s fall play, “The Nerd,” said he’s always enjoyed cartoons. He believes they can be a disarming way to help children learn important lessons.
The key is to respect their intelligence “without the advanced vocabulary,” he said.
Freshman Alexa Claps said she likes the idea of being part of a creative production.
“I was definitely interested in the voice acting,” she said.
Thoren will work with students from Glacier Peak and Snohomish high schools.
That opportunity excites Matt King, the Snohomish School District coordinator for instructional technology. Videos using animation can be catered to whatever a teacher or the district might need. That could include the transition from elementary school to middle school or middle school to high school from a student perspective.
So far, a teacher at Little Cedars Elementary School has been using the videos on a trial basis. They’ve been well received, King said.
“The most important thing about the videos is what happens afterwards, what the teacher does with the students afterwards,” King said. “That’s when a lot of the powerful learning happens. If students are well prepared to learn, they are going to learn faster.”
District special education leaders also see a lot of potential, he said.
“There is no district plan on this,” King said. “The district sees an opportunity to work with someone very earnest about wanting to make a positive difference.”
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.
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